


The Whipping Dog

by ParadiseAvenger



Series: Kink Meme Fills [11]
Category: Jupiter Ascending (2015)
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Kink Meme, Knotting, Public Humiliation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-02
Updated: 2015-03-02
Packaged: 2018-03-16 01:30:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3469394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ParadiseAvenger/pseuds/ParadiseAvenger
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Position yourself, Splice. Let Her Highness see your face." Barefoot, shirtless, stripped of all his weaponry, Caine looked more vulnerable than Jupiter had ever seen him. Her hands trembled as she looked at his broad shoulders and all the scars on his back. Would her failure add more scars to him?</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Whipping Dog

I recently saw Jupiter Ascending in theaters. I expected it to be a weird space movie (which it was in several ways), but I was definitely not expecting it to be so good. While Jupiter is a little bit of a boring female lead, she actually does manage to become stronger at the end. And Caine… Wow, just gorgeous and I need a pair of his boots. Check it out if you haven’t already.

 **Little known fact:** Whipping Boys were actually a common practice with royalty. Since royal children couldn’t be punished by anyone other than royalty, they’d punish a common child raised with the heir instead. 

Kink meme fill. Prompt at the bottom.

X X X

It all happened too fast. By the time Jupiter Jones, Queen of Earth, realized touching the Thing was a faux pas of epic proportions, she already had her fingers all over the precious artifact. It was perhaps one of the most beautiful and strange things she had ever seen. It was vaguely boat-shaped with a glimmering jewel inside the confines of an ornate net of gold leaf. Archaic and definitely alien, she just had to get a closer look and lifted it from the plush embroidered pillow that it lay atop. (1)

Caine’s warning came a second too late as his warm fingers closed around her elbow. The flat strong plane of his chest pressed against her back and shoulder, curling into her like the shells of a clam folding around a pearl, as though he could hide her with his body. 

“What is it?” Jupiter asked Caine, unconcerned since she was being very careful with the treasure, and lifted it curiously to the focused beam of light overhead that streamed down on it. Rainbows of refracted light danced across her face, chest, and bare arms. As she shifted its position, she heard a distant ringing, almost like a bell. It was very faint and incredibly close all at once. Goosebumps rose on her skin. “Oh, wow,” she breathed. 

There was no hiding what she had done by then. 

As one, the assembled nobles of the Hoshi Dynasty (2) turned towards the sound produced by the artifact. With horrified sounds that reminded Jupiter of fish gasping for air, they all stared at her. Caine gripped her wrist and forced her to lower her hand back to the pillow. Taking his hint, she settled the precious treasure back into its original place and stepped away.

All too human, Jupiter raised her hands in supplication and began, “I’m so sorry. My bad—”

“That relic had never been touched by human hands!” The patriarch of the Hoshi shouted and then his voice sobered. “You have soiled it, Your Highness.”

All around them, the other members of the family began to whisper. The Hoshi were human in appearance with smooth caramel-colored skin, long pale hair, and bright animal eyes. They could have passed for humans on Earth if not for the shining gems set directly into their flesh in the area around their collarbones that changed with their moods and emotions. As one, the gems all changed from relaxed hues of blue to bitter yellow-green edged with blood-red. Jupiter didn’t like the look of that color.

“Caine?” she whispered and stepped backwards against him. 

His strong hands folded around her elbows, his fingers pressed into the soft pulse where her arm bent, and he held her just inches from the warmth of his chest. It wouldn’t do to let the Hoshis see just how attached she was to a lowly Splice. “It’ll be alright,” he consoled her softly.

Jupiter nodded cautiously, just a faint dipping of her chin to signify that she heard him.

The Hoshi patriarch turned to his son. Their heads bent together as they whispered in worry, jewels fluttering between colors too quickly for Jupiter to begin to understand. Fear bubbled against her breastbone. All she had wanted to do was earn some allies within the galaxy as she struggled to understand what being a recurrence of Seraphi Abrasax meant. It was turning out to be much more difficult than Stinger had led her to believe, but maybe he hadn’t counted on her humanistic need to touch everything.

“Listen,” Jupiter began in a voice that she hoped was supplicant enough. “I’m really sorry. I didn’t realize it was so precious to you.”

The Hoshi patriarch straightened up and fixed her in place with his bright eyes. Abruptly, he swept himself into a curt bow and then stepped to the forefront of his House. “We understand, Your Highness, but this is not a slight we can let pass. Certainly, we would never assume to punish someone of your Entitled status.”

Jupiter let out a slight breath and began to smile.

The Hoshi patriarch’s face remained hard and the jewel beneath his collarbone remained that ghastly color. “But as we cannot overlook the soiling of our most precious artifact,” he continued sternly, “It will be acceptable to punish your housecarl in your place.”

Caine tightened his hands around her elbows.

Jupiter’s lips shaped the unfamiliar word, confused.

The patriarch’s eyes flicked to Caine and lingered on him. His expression reminded her of her cousin’s eyes just before he raised a hammer to pound in a nail.

Jupiter tensed as her mind connected the dots between her diplomatic error, his affront, and Caine standing close at her back. “No,” she began hastily. Her voice raised a few octaves with her emotions. “No, no, you can’t.” 

The Hoshi patriarch drew himself up. His jewel filled with the color of blood. 

She said desperately, “Caine—”

“It’s customary, Your Majesty,” Caine interrupted before she dug herself deeper into this black hole of political incorrectness. He released her elbows, stepped around her, and away from the artifact. He approached the Hoshi patriarch with his head dipped.

Something inside Jupiter’s chest cracked to see Caine like that. He was proud, strong, fearless. He had saved her so many times, stared down the barrel of guns without flinching, and braved countless deadly feats. Yet it was her own failure that would bring him to his knees. 

“Lay down your weapons, Splice,” the Hoshi patriarch ordered.

From Caine’s forearm, he unfastened the small band that opened into a shield that could block even bullets. Then, he removed the bronze gun from the back of his pants, unsheathed the knife from his hip and another from his boot, and laid them at the patriarch’s feet. They glinted dully in the light of the large hall, reminding Jupiter of the sparkling wine she had been given when she arrived. That alcohol turned in her stomach now.

“And what you have been implanted with.”

For one heart-stopping moment, Jupiter feared that he was demanding Caine remove his fangs, his pointed ears, and everything that had been implanted into his genetics. She almost cried out in horror, but Caine barely reacted as though he already knew what was expected of him. He pulled off his shirt, reached over his shoulder between his folded wings, and pressed his fingers into the prosthetic insert. With a soft sound, the wings retracted like folded origami into the round containers that held them. Caine removed them, leaving faint circular wounds where they connected to his body.

“The boots, as well.”

Caine knelt to unbuckle them, tugged off his gravity boots, and set them aside with his weapons. Barefoot, shirtless, stripped of all his weaponry, he looked more vulnerable than she had ever seen him. An icy-cold seeped into her veins. Her hands trembled as she looked at his broad shoulders, squared before the Hoshis, and all the scars on his back. Would her failure add more scars to him? A little gasp of horror welled in her chest, protests trapped on her painted lips.

“I trust you know our customs, Splice,” the patriarch said.

Caine nodded, just once.

Jupiter’s heart pounded a ragged tattoo against her ribcage. She suddenly wished she had studied more for her visit to this planet. Maybe if she had, she would know what to expect now. Perhaps more importantly, maybe if she had, she wouldn’t be in this situation at all. She wet her lips nervously and clenched her fingers in the material of her flowing skirt. 

His hands steady and firm, Caine unfastened his belt, pulled down his pants, and stepped out of them. Naked, he slowly knelt with his head bowed. 

A pair of the Hoshi’s servants bustled into the vast room with a small settee between them. They set it down between the patriarch and Caine before swiftly exiting. A moment later, a second pair of servants returned with an ornate box. They set it down beside the settee, opened all the gold locks with a flourish, and then eased the chest open. From her angle, Jupiter couldn’t see what lay inside, but her skin went cold and clammy. 

“Position yourself, Splice,” the patriarch commanded. “Let Her Highness see your face.”

The first tremor of unease moved through the line of Caine’s shoulders and back. His jaw clenched, throat flashing as he swallowed and breathed. Still on his knees, he crawled around the settee so that he was facing Jupiter. He didn’t meet her eyes as he stretched himself across the small bench. The rounded arms on either side adjusted his position. One raised his hips while his neck dipped awkwardly against the other. He lowered his hands to grip the legs of settee and then went still.

The patriarch murmured in approval and turned towards the open chest.

Jupiter pulled her eyes from Caine only to realize that the entire House of Hoshi had assembled in the room while she was watching the scene unfold. They drank colored wine as though nothing obscene was happening. They were all watching Caine’s punishment for her failure, their gemstones sickly shades of red and green. She wished they would leave. She wished they would punish her instead. She almost said so, but she was too worried that speaking would only make it worse for Caine.

She moved her gaze back to him, heart bottled in her throat. Stricken, she realized there was a strong-looking man standing beside the patriarch now. His arms, legs, and neck were corded with an abundance of muscle. His gem was pitch-black. He reminded her of an executioner, but he carried no weapons and was without a hood. They wouldn’t kill Caine, would they? 

The patriarch removed a terrible whip from the chest. It had a handle as thick as Jupiter’s arm and spread into several long tendrils. Each was tipped with a tiny laser that gleamed red-hot while shards of sharpened metal like thorns ringed the leather. He turned towards Jupiter and tilted his head pensively as he studied the artifact behind her on its pillow. 

“How many lashes sound fair to you, Your Highness?” the Hoshi patriarch asked smoothly, as though they were discussing lunch options.

Jupiter’s throat closed.

“One hundred?” he offered.

Jupiter jolted and gasped, “No,” before thinking about her actions. 

The patriarch tapped his chin. “Of course, how silly of me,” he remarked. “One thousand is more reasonable.”

Caine’s knuckles whitened around the legs of the settee. 

Jupiter clutched desperately at the dregs of her authority. She couldn’t allow Caine to be struck with that monstrosity one thousand times, but she knew she was on a slippery slope. If she said the wrong word, the Hoshi patriarch would probably just double the lashes and Caine would suffer further for her inability. 

“No,” Jupiter said urgently. Her voice rang against the walls, echoing in the silence.

The patriarch paused and studied her.

“F-five hundred,” Jupiter said as firmly as she could manage. “Five hundred is fair. I need him to escort me home, after all.”

The patriarch nodded considering. “Agreed,” he said. “Five hundred strikes. I shall draw the first fifty and then turn the whip to my own housecarl.” He gestured to the unbearable muscled man beside him. “Would you care to count the lashes, Your Highness?”

Jupiters tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth, but she managed to swallow. If she didn’t agree, who knew whether or not they would deliver more than the promised amount? She didn’t want Caine to suffer any more than he had to. “Y-yes,” she forced out.

“Of course, my son shall count as well so that there can be no argument about the number,” the patriarch said with a slick smile. 

His son stepped to his side, looking more eager than Jupiter could stomach. 

She looked back at Caine. His golden eyes gleamed, but he was unmoving. The light played on his naked skin. Tears burned in Jupiter’s eyes and throat, but she fought them back. She didn’t want to risk any more social taboos that might garner Caine more punishment in her place. 

“May I begin?” the patriarch inquired.

Jupiter nodded, her throat working to swallow the bile that welled in her chest.

The Hoshi patriarch weighed the whip in his hand pensively, swung it a few experimental times at his side, and then lifted his arm. The whip arched overhead and sliced down like a falcon diving. The sound of it striking Caine’s skin was akin to a gunshot. Jupiter was almost ill as she saw several stripes of torn seared skin appear on his back. Caine flinched, but didn’t cry out.

“One,” the son said keenly.

The patriarch swung again. The biting edge of the whip found the tender skin where Caine’s wings usually were and he jolted. The legs of the settee creaked where he gripped them. Blood beaded on the wounds, glistening like rubies. The patriarch licked his lips hungrily, as though thinking about tasting Caine’s blood. 

“Two,” the son continued.

Part of Jupiter’s mind latched onto the familiar act of counting. She fixed her eyes on Caine’s face. It was her fault. It was all her fault that he was being punished. She was a failure—so stupid, just like the pathetic human he had rescued so many months ago. She would watch every second of his suffering, feeling it in her chest like a fist clenching around her vital organs. 

“Three, four, five.” 

The son’s voice became a drone in her head that echoed the painful crack of the whip on Caine’s skin. All throughout the room, the Hoshis murmured softly. It almost sounded like moaning, but Jupiter didn’t look away from Caine to see what they were doing. She had a pretty good idea, if the lusty gleam in their jewels was anything to go by. 

“Six, seven, eight, nine, ten…”

Jupiter’s lips shaped each number in silence. Caine looked at her, his golden eyes boring into her, until the patriarch’s fifty lashes ended. Breathing hard, the patriarch handed the whip to his constituent. Caine took a deep breath and Jupiter watched the bloody expanse of his back move into her view and then out again as he did so. 

Jupiter mouthed, ‘I’m so sorry,’ to him.

Caine blinked slowly.

Then, the patriarch’s retainer lifted the whip high over his head and brought it down so hard that Caine’s entire body jerked with pain. A horrific rent appeared down his back, ripping along the small crisscrossing wounds the patriarch had left. Blood ran freely from the gaping wound, dripping down the line of his ribs and over the edge of the settee. 

Caine’s eyes snapped shut and she saw the muscles of his jaw stand out as he clenched his teeth. His body rocked against the line of the bench with each new blow. Jupiter wanted to look away, but didn’t allow herself that. The whip fell on Caine again and again, ripping apart his skin and body. Blood splattered on the nearest members of the Hoshi family with each backlash of the whip. 

Awed and licking his lips, the son’s counting fell silent. 

Jupiter took it up. “One hundred and four,” she continued with her eyes on Caine’s shoulders.

The curve of Caine’s ribs heaved with his breath. Flesh was cleaved from his bone with each strike of the whip. The metal shards bit into him, tearing his wounds worse and worse as each lash fell on him. The searing point left jagged burns. Jupiter could see it was all Caine could do to remain silent as the pain overwhelmed him. 

“Three hundred and thirty-six,” the son resumed with Jupiter.

She swallowed. How was it that so many lashes remained? 

As they reached the four hundred mark, little whimpers and cries began escaping Caine’s lips. Each tiny sound was a dagger in Jupiter’s heart, ripping at her in a way that whip never could. She wanted to call out, to say anything to comfort Caine, but she didn’t dare. She watched as stoically as she could, her face concealed into a mask that split a little more with each blow. 

The pool of blood gathered around the base of the settee, gleaming like rubies, matching the shine of the Hoshis’ gemstones. She could see Caine’s bare toes curling desperately against the marble, trying to anchor himself in the slippery mess of pain and torture. The whip cracked low on his body and a keening whimper of anguish escaped his lips. 

“Five hundred,” Jupiter gasped breathlessly. Relief surged through her veins.

The patriarch raised a hand and his guard ceased.

Quietly, the servants returned as soon as the whip was tucked back into the chest. Caine let go of the settee and crumpled over the edge of it. He half-knelt half-slumped before the House of Hoshi. Jupiter hastened to his side as quickly as she dared. The beautiful dress, swirling silk cloak, and ungainly heels that she had been so excited to don felt like iron chains holding her back. She stood at Caine’s shoulder and desperately wanted to touch him, but didn’t think there was any place she could touch without hurting him more. He was a mess, his back wrecked, blood seeping from his many wounds.

“If it pleases you, Lord Hoshi,” she forced out, “I believe I will take my leave now.”

The patriarch nodded, smiling graciously. “Of course, Your Highness,” he agreed. “It’s been a pleasure. You may expect my support, should you ever require it.”

Jupiter’s skin crawled as she let him take her hand and kiss it. Caine’s blood speckled his skin.

Every eye in the House of Hoshi was upon her, waiting to see what she’d do now. Jupiter sucked in a breath and tried to imagine herself proud and cold. She licked her lips nervously, tasting the lipstick that remained after so much anxiety. “Caine,” she said imperiously. 

His voice was ragged as he spoke. “Yes, Your Majesty?” 

“Gather your armaments,” she said. “We must leave.”

“Of course, Your Majesty,” Caine murmured. 

With difficulty that ripped Jupiter to the core, he gathered his clothing, boots, and weapons into his arms. He staggered to his feet, a little cry escaping his lips as the wounds on his back tore with each motion. Shakily, he stood beside her. Jupiter dipped her chin at the patriarch, turned on her heel, and marched from the elegant room. Caine trailed behind her, breathing hard. 

The moment the heavy doors closed at their backs, Jupiter whirled to face Caine. Her hands fluttered at the edge of his shoulders, by his throat, near his face, but she didn’t know where to touch him. She didn’t even know if she could, if she should. Everywhere she looked, there was blood and torn flesh. It was her fault he was hurt so badly.

“Oh my god,” she gasped and let the tears swell in her eyes. “I’m so sorry, Caine. I’m so sorry.”

Caine leaned his cheek into her nearby palm. “It is alright,” he murmured. “It is my job to protect Your Majesty.”

Jupiter’s breath shuddered in her chest and tears rolled unchecked down her cheeks. “Let’s just get you back to the ship,” she whispered. “You need medical attention.”

Caine didn’t protest.

Jupiter ripped the silk cape from her shoulders and gently put it around Caine’s nakedness. He hissed as the silk lay against his back, but then breathed deeply once the stinging atmosphere of this planet stopped blowing against his open wounds. Jupiter took his boots and weapons regardless of their weight. As quickly as Caine was able, they returned to her waiting ship. Jupiter didn’t think she had ever been so happy to see it. The glimmering blue portal was the most welcome sight she had ever seen. Together, she and Caine stepped into it and were weightlessly lifted into the ship.

Jupiter said to the pilot, “Get us out of here.”

Since robots piloted the entire ship, no one spared them a second glance as Jupiter brought Caine to the medical wing. The door to the bay hissed closed behind them and Jupiter dropped Caine’s weapons and boots with a clatter. Caine dropped his clothes as well. He braced his palms against the table, but didn’t sit down. Jupiter began rummaging through all the cabinets in search of the magical healing spray she had seen Stinger use on Caine once before. 

“Top shelf,” Caine told her breathily.

She had to climb onto the counter to reach it, hiking her dress over her thighs, but didn’t care. With it clenched cool in her hand, she gently peeled the silk cloak from Caine’s back. Her heart stopped. The damage to him was increasingly worse than she thought. She almost didn’t know how he had survived such injuries.

From the tops of his shoulders down his entire back over his buttocks and thighs to the backs of his knees, his flesh was ruined. The whip had torn him to the bone, rending apart his skin uncaringly. Jagged burns overlapped each other like netting holding his demolished skin together. Blood still wept freely from the wounds, dripping quietly on the floor at his feet.

“Oh god,” she breathed and clasped a hand to her mouth. 

“The spray,” Caine insisted brokenly

Jupiter shook it habitually and pressed her finger over the top. 

Caine breathed out in shaky relief as the cool spray began to pull his skin together. Jupiter knelt to spray the backs of his legs, stricken by the deepness of his wounds even there. It looked like his buttocks had received the brunt of the punishment and she spent half the can there. As the can emptied, the wounds began to stop healing regardless of how much she sprayed them. Thick black bruises covered the entirety of Caine’s body where he had been struck and several scratches of varying density remained. Jupiter went to get another can, but Caine gripped her elbow with weak fingers. 

“It won’t do any good,” he said softly. “It’s too much for it. It’s medicine, not a miracle.”

Jupiter’s fingers trembled as she very gently traced the edge of the bruise on his shoulder. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” she whispered. Tears welled in her eyes again and streamed down her face. “I didn’t know. I’m so sorry.”

Caine dipped his head, shied from her hand, and picked his pants up from the floor where he had dropped them. Groaning in pain, he tugged them over his raw skin but didn’t tighten his belt. They hung against his hips, low over the v of his pelvis. For once, hunger didn’t creep warm into Jupiter’s body. All she could think about was the slash of the whip, the weight of the artifact in her fingers, the coppery overtone of his blood perfuming the air.

“Your Majesty,” he murmured blankly and slipped out of the medical bay.

As soon as the door closed at his back, Jupiter slid to her knees amidst his boots, weapons, and remaining clothes. She couldn’t believe how stupid she had been. Tears dripped slow and hot down her face. After several long moment of quiet weeping, she wiped her face with her hands and they came away smudged with makeup. The lipstick and eyeliner smeared across her hands like marbled blood and bruises. Disgust welled inside her. Jupiter only just made it to the toilet before her stomach heaved up all the brightly-colored wine she had drunk at the Hoshi House.

Breathing hard, she leaned her forehead against the utilitarian metal bowl. Her entire body trembled with the aftershocks of violent nausea. Cold sweat broke out across her skin and she pressed her hand to her mouth. She breathed in shakily, but all she could smell was Caine’s blood mingling with her own clammy skin. Jupiter dragged herself to her feet, kicked off her uncomfortable heels, and padded barefoot down the deserted hallway. 

She reached the junction at the ship’s center. The path to the right led to her lavish quarters, the space designed specifically for a queen, even though Stinger had picked out most of the furniture. To the left were the barracks for soldiers, the mechanist’s shop to repair robots, and the humming engines. She pressed her lips together and leaned against the wall. 

She wanted so badly to go to Caine, but she didn’t know if he wanted to see her. If she was in his place, she would probably want to be as far from the one who hurt her as possible. She should give him some time, some space, and anything else he needed. Taking a deep breath, Jupiter pushed away from the wall and headed to her chambers. 

…

Enclosed in the safe darkness of his bunk, Caine tried to find a comfortable position on his bed. At all angles, the usually-soft mattress felt like knives carving into his brutalized body. His back, his butt, and his legs all throbbed from the cruel punishment. Wincing, he rolled onto his side and breathed out slowly. He closed his eyes and tried to think about something other than the pain, like the warm press of blankets over his bare shoulders. 

His mind turned to Jupiter’s lovely face, her tears, the undisguised suffering in her expression as she watched him beaten. Caine couldn’t count the number of times someone had cried for him, mainly because no one ever had. He was just a Splice and a defective one at that. He had been sold to the Legion as a loss, expected to die during his first mission. He had never had anyone care for him the way Jupiter did. 

He listened to the rumble of the ship, sensitive ears perked for the soft footsteps of his queen. He didn’t hear anything. The ship was quiet, peaceful, still. Caine closed his eyes and tucked his nose against his pillow. Exhaustion gripped at him, pulling him deeper and deeper into the mattress. The agony of being beaten had diminished, but he still ached to his bones. The pain pulled him into the dark.

Caine wasn’t sure when he fell asleep, but he woke alone. It was cool in his room and the small clock on his nightstand said that four hours had passed since the disastrous meeting with House Hoshi. Groaning softly, he sat up in bed and stretched his back experimentally. The pain had diminished to a familiar bruising throb. It reminded him of the endless days he had spent training to be accepted into the Legion, all the hits he had received from sparring partners better than him, and the abuse he occasionally suffered for being what he was. 

He rose from the bed and slipped into the attached bathroom. He had never had such a luxury, but Jupiter had it installed specifically for him aboard her ship. It hurt to bend over the sink so he found a cup, filled it, and drank deeply. The crisp water soothed his throat and washed the lingering taste of blood from his mouth. He set the cup down softly and breathed in deep, scenting the air. 

Jupiter’s perfume was not there.

With a jolt, Caine realized she hadn’t come to see him. She hadn’t even come to check on him. He didn’t need it and had no right to want his queen kneeling at his bedside, but part of him had expected her to come. He had been hurt so badly protecting her. Didn’t she care?

He pushed that thought away. He knew Jupiter cared for him—at least, he was pretty sure she did, if all her flowery proclamations were to be believed. She said she didn’t care that he was a Splice, that he was lower than her, that he was worthless in everyone’s eyes, that he was more like a beast than a human. She said she loved dogs, that she always had.

Maybe it was her own flaws, her own failure, that she couldn’t bear to see. Maybe looking at him reminded her of how difficult it was to be a queen. Maybe she couldn’t stand to see him right now. Did she think herself weak for caring about him? Did she hate him for being close to her? His heart clenched at the thought. 

Caine breathed in again, wondering if he had somehow missed her scent. 

He had not. 

It wasn’t there.

A bubble of worry welled in his chest. He debated putting on a shirt, pulling on his armor, seeking out his weapons, but he didn’t want them right now. He just wanted Jupiter. Barefoot and shirtless, he left his room and walked slowly down the hallway towards Jupiter’s chambers. At the divergence of the hall, he could smell her tears. She had lingered here, crying quietly enough that he couldn’t hear her. Then, her scent moved away towards her room. Caine followed the familiar path, but hesitated outside her gilded door. 

His senses vibrated, filled with the saline of her sadness and the hum of her sobs. Four hours had passed and she was still crying inside her room. He lifted his hand, but didn’t quite knock. His knuckles rested against the door. He tried to persuade himself to knock, but couldn’t. Inside, Jupiter wept.

Caine hesitated. 

What if Jupiter didn’t want to see him? 

What if she had forsaken a worthless Splice like him?

Caine breathed in again and then nudged open the door with a muted hiss. He had seen Jupiter’s chambers before. Despite the way he looked and behaved, Stinger had very good taste. The room was decadent without being overbearing. Most of his attention had been paid to the bedding and furniture, most of which were similar to Earth’s standard since Jupiter needed to feel at home aboard her ship. The bed was rumpled, but Jupiter was not lying in it. The bathroom door hung open.

Jupiter’s lovely dress lay in a puddle in the middle of the floor, strewn recklessly, and Caine stepped over it. He crossed silently to her bathroom and called softly, “Jupiter?”

Her crying softened, but didn’t cease. 

Caine peeked into the bathroom and saw that she had changed into a simple black shirt. She was slumped in front of the toilet with her legs drawn tightly against her chest and her arms wrapped around them. She buried her face in her bare knees, sobbing. 

“Jupiter?” he murmured.

She flinched and he knew she heard him. Since she didn’t demand he go away, he stepped into the bathroom and gingerly crouched beside her. The skin of his back pulled taut, itchy and raw in its newness. He winced and balanced himself against the counter. Jupiter didn’t uncurl herself even as he touched her shoulder.

“Jupiter?” he hesitated, looking at her mussed hair hanging over her face in a curtain. “Do you… want me to go?”

Jupiter tensed and quickly looked up at him. Her eyes were red-rimmed and swollen from crying. She shook her head quickly and reached for him, but hesitated at the last second. She curled her fingers against her palms to stop herself from touching him. “Caine, I’m sorry,” she sobbed. “I’m so sorry.”

Caine took her hand and pressed his cheek against her palm. Her fingers curved around the shell of his ear. “What’s wrong?” he asked softly and prayed that she wouldn’t say that she couldn’t look at him ever again without being reminded of her failure. He was so attached to her that he would sooner lose his wings than her.

Jupiter cradled his face in her hand. Her thumb traced along his cheekbone gently. “I let them hurt you,” she whispered. “I’m so stupid and I just let them hurt you. What kind of queen am I if I can’t protect you?” Tears slipped down her cheeks. “I’m so sorry.”

Soft relief flooded his veins. Jupiter still cared for him and still wanted him around. He dipped his head and gingerly kissed her lips. She tasted of salt and sorrow. Caine touched her chin with his fingertips, tilting her jaw so that her lips parted like flower petals and allowed him inside. He coaxed her tongue against his and soon she returned his kiss as though she was drowning and he was the best vessel to seek sanctuary upon. One hand slid away from his face and into his hair, tugging him closer. After a long slow moment, they broke apart. Caine rested his forehead against hers, breathing in her scent. 

“Jupiter,” he whispered.

Her breath puffed softly against his lips. 

“I would gladly take that punishment again, if only to spare you,” he murmured.

Jupiter’s fingers tightened in his hair. “I don’t want to see you hurt,” she whispered. “You’re precious to me. Caine, I…”

“This is enough for me,” he breathed into her. “It’s enough that you care.” His thumbs carded softly over her wet cheeks, smoothing away the tears and remains of her makeup. “You’ve cried for me.” He pressed his lips to her cheek, her nose, and finally her lips. “No one has ever done that for me before.”

Jupiter kissed him tenderly, imagining that she could taste his pain like her tears.

Crumpled together on the bathroom floor, Jupiter had never felt so close to Caine. Gently, he swathed her in his arms and lifted her onto her feet. She leaned into him as much as she dared, not wanting to be apart from him but not wanting to hurt him further. Caine gathered her against him and they walked together to her bed. Jupiter sat down on the sheets, her hands clasped at the belt loops of Caine’s low pants. He hesitated for a moment, eyes moving from her to the floor to the door and back. 

“Will you stay?” Jupiter asked softly.

Caine rested his hands on her wrists and the pads of his fingers stroked over her skin absently as he thought. “Okay,” he murmured. 

Since he was already barefoot and unarmed, it was an easy matter for him to lie down beside her on the neatly-made bed. Jupiter lay facing him, her eyes glittering, and he ran his fingers along the curve of her body. Her long bare legs pressed against his. Ever so gently, she touched the chiseled plane of his chest, tracing the muscles and scars. She caressed the intricate network of the dark tattoo on his bicep, letting her nail scrape along the design. Caine dipped his head to kiss her and she melted. 

He wanted to belong to her—needed to belong to her—if she would still have him. He tugged her flush against his chest, cradling her to him as he deepened the kiss. His hand slipped down her back and palmed the sweet swell of her bottom. She moaned into his mouth, but then pushed him away with both hands.

“No,” she whispered.

Caine’s heart stopped.

Jupiter pecked a soft kiss to his lips comfortingly and whispered, “I want to… do something for you instead.” When he hesitated, she continued, “Is that okay?”

Caine nodded cautiously, uncertain, as Jupiter sat up beside him and crossed her legs. Wearing only the black shirt and her panties, he couldn’t help but gaze at her. She touched his collarbone and his eyes snapped up to her face.

“Can you lie on your back?” she asked. “Or does it hurt too much?”

He shook his head mutely and rolled onto his back. A faint twinge crept up his spine, but her mattress was far softer than his and it abated a moment later. Jupiter crawled over his legs to settle between them. His breath hitched and a pulse of heat settled in his belly. Jupiter caressed him through his pants and felt him push up against her like the head of a fern seeking sunlight. She smiled faintly and tugged his pants down enough to free his member. The sight of it was no less staggering than the first time she saw it. She was already soaked with the thought of him inside her, but blinked away that hunger. 

She stroked him a few times, watching his hips buck involuntarily with the pleasure. His eyes slipped closed and his lips parted. To surprise him, she leaned down and engulfed him in her mouth without preamble. A strangled sound escaped his lips and his fingers twisted in the bedspread. Jupiter’s tongue moved along the bottom of his shaft, licking the veins and tasting his heartbeat. She swallowed as much of him as she could, taking him deeper, but he was too long. She wrapped her hands around what she couldn’t reach of him. 

Caine moaned breathlessly. Jupiter drew back and swirled her tongue around the slick head of him. She stroked, quickening the pace of her hands and lips. Her cheeks hollowed as she looked up at him. A flush colored his cheeks and the tips of his ears as the pulse pounded in his throat. He was so beautiful. She dipped her tongue against the slit and then swallowed him down again. He bumped the back of her throat and she swallowed. Caine whined, positively whined, and she delighted in the pleasure she could give to him. 

His knot began to swell beneath her fingers and she knew he was close. She redoubled her efforts, sucking his tip before sliding back down. She couldn’t fit her lips over his knot and instead covered it with her hands, milking him as she licked very available inch. Caine keened under her ministrations, hips convulsing against her in stifled thrusts. Jupiter was grateful for his consideration, though she wouldn’t have minded if he gripped her hair or moved hungrily. He deserved more than this. He deserved everything she could offer him.

As if reading her mind, pulled over by her intimate thoughts, Caine came suddenly. His tip slipped from her mouth when his hips jerked and the hot seed splattered on her face. Jupiter blinked in surprise as it trailed down her face and dripped off her chin. 

Caine bolted into a sitting position with her still caged between his long legs. “Your Majesty,” he gasped out, horrified. “I’m so sorry. I—” Apologies poured from his lips as he hastily wiped her face with his fingers. “I didn’t mean to.”

Jupiter grasped his wrists and examined his seed-stained fingers. She met his eyes and very slowly took his fingers into her mouth. Tantalizingly, she licked every inch of his callused skin, his warrior’s hands, the ones that had saved her life so many times and continued to protect her. She withdrew his clean fingers from her mouth and licked his palm without ever breaking their gaze.

Caine trembled, staring at her as took his other hand and repeated the process. 

Finished, she licked her lips and smiled at him. She tucked his hand against her cheek and cuddled into it. “Thank you, Caine,” she whispered. Though she was soaked and aching for him, she wanted this to just be about him. If he didn’t want to go any farther tonight, she wouldn’t ask him.

“Your Majesty,” he whispered.

“Jupiter,” she corrected softly. 

Caine’s eyes softened. He gently removed her shirt and pulled her close against him. Their bare skin pressed together delightfully and he ran his hands down the curve of her back. She shifted her legs around his waist and settled comfortably in his lap. She wanted to hold him tightly, but she knew his back was still hurting even if he didn’t show it. His member pressed against her wet panties and she knew he could feel how badly she wanted him. Jupiter dipped her head and kissed his neck. 

“If you want,” she began.

Caine nodded. He reached between their bodies and tried to remove her panties, but Jupiter couldn’t bring herself to untangle her legs from his waist. She added her fingers to the mix and shifted her panties aside. Taking him between her fingers, she helped him slide into her. His girth stretched her and she moaned as he filled her to the brim. For a moment, she remained still as she just felt him inside her. Caine’s fingers trembled on her back, his lips whispered along her collarbones, and he kissed her throat.

Slowly, she shifted her weight onto her knees and then rocked down onto him. Caine gasped, soaking in the pleasure, as Jupiter rode him. She dipped her head to kiss him and his tongue immediately darted out to taste her. His hips canted up to meet her as she drove down on him. She moaned quietly and quickened the pace as best she could without his shoulders to brace herself on. He thrust hard, arms wrapping tight around her back.

As he thrust, Jupiter felt his knot begin to swell. It rubbed deliciously against the sweet spot just inside her. Without even being asked, Caine’s fingers slipped between them to caress her pearl. She moaned his name and felt his entire body quiver. He gripped her hip with one hand, steadying her as he quickened his pace. The knot rubbed warmly against her, his fingers stroked, and the speed of his thrusts pulled her over the edge. She cried out his name as the bliss washed through her.

Caine buried his mouth against her shoulder, breathing shakily, as he came inside. His knot swelled within her, stretching her to the limits of pleasant fullness. It was only just recently that Jupiter had been able to convince him it wouldn’t hurt her. In fact, she loved the feeling of him filling her, preventing his seed from escaping her body even if nothing would come of it. She tucked her lips into the hollow of his throat and sucked gently.

Caine cradled her, supporting her body, as they waited for his knot to release. Some distant shard of the wolf inside him delighted in having a mate that accepted him, all of him, and Caine tucked his nose into her warm hair. Jupiter was wonderful, precious, and he would withstand any trial if it meant he could have her.

“Caine,” Jupiter whispered.

He nuzzled her, thrumming softly in his chest.

When he was soft enough, he slipped out of her pliant body, helped her remove her soaked panties, and tucked her beneath the covers. She held onto his hand, tightly, as though he might leave. Caine hesitated, looking down at her face and red-rimmed eyes. She looked as pale and small as he felt on the inside. Without speaking, he slipped into bed beside her and curled against her nudity. His arm was warm and comforting over her waist and Jupiter threaded her fingers with his. 

She buried her face into his bare chest and inhaled the scent of his skin. Caine slipped his hand into the cool silk of her hair and held her to him gently. Her lips moved softly against a scar beneath his collarbone, worshiping it tenderly, and her warm tongue caressed it. Caine shivered and curled a little tighter around her. She rested her hand on his neck, thumb moving gently across his raised brand. With a soft breath, her fingers and lips went still as she fell asleep. 

Caine snuggled against her, arms coiled around her like a castle. Drained by the pain, stress, and pleasure, he listened to the sound of her even breathing and soft heartbeat as he fell asleep. Safe in her warmth and scent, Caine had never slept so deeply as he did. He didn’t wake until the next morning when he felt Jupiter’s lips against his. Sleepily, he growled and cradled her to him, deepening the kiss. As her hands trailed down his bruised back, he barely felt the pain of his beating. All he felt was warm.

X X X

(1) I based the description of the precious artifact on the ‘Shakuna Vimana’ or ‘The Flying Ark on Which God Rides’ from the amazing movie “Children who Chase Lost Voices.” If you haven’t seen it, do yourself a favor and watch it right now!

(2) Hoshi means ‘star’ in Japanese.

 **Prompt:** http://jakink.dreamwidth.org/724.html?thread=55508#cmt55508

Questions, comments, concerns?


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